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MV Guide: February 6-12, 2012
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively TV. Every week, the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of titles to take a look at. During our streamed events, you can participate in the live chat, ask questions to learn about the game, and simply spend some time with Massively staff and readers. (Of course, streaming is subject to the whims of outside forces like server-side gremlins once in a while.) Follow along after the jump to see what's on this week's schedule!
MV Guide: January 30-February 5, 2012
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively TV. Every week, the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of titles to take a look at. During our streamed events, you can participate in the live chat, ask questions to learn about the game, and simply spend some time with Massively staff and readers. (Of course, streaming is subject to the whims of outside forces like server-side gremlins once in a while.) Follow along after the jump to see what's on this week's schedule!
MV Guide: January 23-29, 2012
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively TV. Every week, the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of titles to take a look at. During our streamed events, you can participate in the live chat, ask questions to learn about the game, and simply spend some time with Massively staff and readers. (Of course, streaming is subject to the whims of outside forces like server-side gremlins once in a while.) Follow along after the jump to see what's on this week's schedule!
MV Guide: January 16-22, 2012
MV Guide is a weekly rundown of the MMO gaming events planned on Massively TV. Every week, the Massively staff logs in to play various MMOs live and in person, and we'd love for you to drop by the channel and visit. We have a combination of regular weekly games and new surprises, so you'll find a variety of titles to take a look at. During our streamed events, you can participate in the live chat, ask questions to learn about the game, and simply spend some time with Massively staff and readers. (Of course, streaming is subject to the whims of outside forces like server-side gremlins once in a while.) Follow along after the jump to see what's on this week's schedule!
Previously on MV TV: Week of January 9th, 2012
Welcome to the brand-new Previously on MV TV! Our livestreaming schedule has picked up a lot over the past few weeks, and our readers have busy lives, so we know it's impossible to watch every single streaming event live. Fortunately for you, we save all of our streams all for posterity on Massively's Twitch TV channel, so you can view them at your leisure. Even better, we've got a roundup of a few of last week's MV TV highlights from the livestream team. Follow along after the jump for the best of the best!
Analyst claims that Star Wars: The Old Republic points to a healthy MMO market
The gaming industry is pretty morbid when you get right down to it. 2011 has seen several people predicting the death of the MMO market and the death of subscription games, often times in the same sentence. But according to analyst Colin Sebastian, the launch of Star Wars: The Old Republic makes it clear that these reports of death have been greatly exaggerated. As Sebastian puts it, the unprecedented growth of SWTOR's player figures indicates that the market still possesses a demand for new games and still responds favorably. Sebastian goes on to predict that the game will likely move around three million units by March 2012, the end of the fiscal year, although he believes that staying power is a bit more questionable. He believes that predictions of up to two million paying users by the end of 2012 might be overly optimistic. That having been said, the game has certainly come out of the gate with real strength; it only remains to be seen if it can maintain that.
Newest patch notes Star Wars: The Old Republic highlight bug fixes
Bugs are frustrating, and inevitably some of them seep through to launch with a new MMO. Star Wars: The Old Republic produced a fairly polished end product, but there were still issues, most notably certain memory problems with Taris and some harvesting nodes that couldn't be harvested. As a result, the game's first patch has been rolled out following this morning's maintenance, and the first set of patch notes have gone live detailing the bugfixes and minor updates provided. Aside from the two obvious changes, there has been a handful of balance adjustments. Slicing has seen a slight downgrade to bring its rewards more in line with those of other gathering professions, and the Mandalorian Raiders flashpoint has seen several enemies lose their immunity to crowd control. Players can look forward to more steady adjustments as the game continues, but some quick fixes to noteworthy issues are always good to see -- especially so close to the holidays.
Star Wars: The Old Republic launches Android authenticator and upcoming test server
If analyst predictions hold true, Star Wars: The Old Republic is going to be big. And that means that it's going to be heir to the natural problem of account hackings, the sort of thing that goes hand in hand with every major MMO. Luckily, the game has launched with security authenticators already available, with a physical version and an Apple app available right out of the gate. The mobile authenticator for Android devices is also now available, meaning that you have a multitude of ways to ensure that the only threats to your characters are those of the blaster-wielding variety. Once you've gotten through the authenticator stage, however, perhaps you'd like to see what's coming next for the game? Ask a Jedi reports that it looks like BioWare is in the process of setting up a public test server, giving every subscriber a chance to enjoy the upcoming patches and updates before they go live. While players will not be able to copy characters from the live servers to the test environment at this time, the team behind Star Wars: The Old Republic seems to be polishing up the game on a daily basis even though it's just launched, so that likely won't remain the case for long.
Star Wars: The Old Republic preps for guild imports, server list takes shape
At 7:00 a.m. EST tomorrow morning, the coveted early access invitations will be sent out for Star Wars: The Old Republic. Some of them, anyway. (Some players will have to wait a little bit longer.) If you're in one of the many guilds that prepared and recruited prior to the game's launch via the on-site recruitment feature, you're also in line to start in on the early guild deployment, which is outlined in detail on the official site. Long story short, you'll be given your guild's server assignment, and if you're unhappy with it, you're going to have to start up on a different server rather than using the automated joining. Unfortunately, players aren't being given a full preview of servers ahead of time, but based on the deployment messages, a list is taking shape over on Ask a Jedi. The list is, of course, not absolute -- it's simply what servers are known that have been passed along -- but it's certainly extensive, with several different PvE, PvP, and RP servers for both US coasts and Europe. Keep checking back for more information, and keep your eyes on your mailbox early tomorrow morning. Star Wars: The Old Republic is finally here, and the Force is with Massively! We've prepared a Hutt-sized feast of class introductions, gameplay guides, lore roundups, and hands-on previews to help you navigate the launch period and beyond. And don't forget our weekly SWTOR column, the Hyperspace Beacon!
SWTOR: So you want to play a Jedi Consular
Peace. Serenity. Harmony. These are some of the touchstones of the Jedi order, and they are the values that the Consular embodies. Where the Jedi Knight is meant to be the military and defensive might of the Jedi Order, the Consular is instead a teacher, a defender, and a scholar of the mysteries of the Force. If a Knight can be seen as a paladin, then the Consular is the gentle monk, teaching others and seeking out new mysteries for spiritual purposes. Of course, the war against the Sith Empire means that there is no opportunity for these scholars to remain passive, but the Jedi Consular does not act with rash and overt motion. Instead, Consulars remain subtle, either slipping through the shadows or calling upon the raw might of the Force. In battle, they may specialize in a variety of roles, but all Consulars take a more cerebral approach. For them, the war is not their truest focus -- what matters is learning and understanding. This war will end, and afterwards, the Consular will teach those who remain what has been forgotten in the ravages of battle.
SWTOR: So you want to play a Sith Warrior
No class embodies the Sith philosophy so completely as the Sith Warrior. Inquisitors hide and scheme, but Warriors let their passion run rampant. It's not that they lack in subtlety, merely that they are capable of channeling their passion into destructive force so effortlessly that careful manipulation is often unnecessary. In the army of the Sith Empire, they are the lords and the commanders, the highest aspirations of those with Force sensitivity, and the natural-born masters of nearly everyone else. Sith Warriors are correspondingly limited in their options on the field. They can tear apart armies or hold said armies off single-handed, but they certainly can't help patch the wounds of their comrades. But the whole class philosophy is built around the best defense being a strong offense, and the plethora of Force abilities and agile lightsaber strikes in the Warrior's arsenal give you several options while you're breaking everything that stands before you. It's a talent that comes in handy as you progress through the class questline, a story of expectations, betrayal, and the survival instincts necessary for someone to be a true Sith.
Star Wars: The Old Republic approaching the final phase of testing
It's hard to believe that after all this time, Star Wars: The Old Republic is launching in less than a month. As you would expect, the game is making its final testing pushes for players. According to Stephen "Rockjaw" Reid's Twitter feed, players selected for the final testing weekend will be seeing schedules sent out over the next 12 hours, with players allowed to start testing either Friday or Saturday, starting at 11:00 a.m. EST. Existing testers and visitors to the site will also have to contend with some degree of maintenance trouble, as the site is experiencing an understandable groundswell of traffic. The final push also means that the deadline is approaching for players to get in on the Pre-Launch Guild Program, which ends at 11:59 p.m. PST on December 2nd. This means that players who fulfill all the requirements will be able to transfer their guilds straight into the live game -- but they'll have to finalize everything before the deadline. So if you're a guild leader with a few things left to finish up before launch, the holiday weekend might be an ideal time.
Wings Over Atreia: TORn away
*suits up in full firefighters gear* Alrighty, now I am ready! The topic for this week's Wings Over Atreia presented itself when I logged into Aion at prime-time on Thursday night and found the very odd occurrence of both an empty legion list and an empty friends list. Considering how full the latter is (plug for larger lists here), I've never seen both be completely empty simultaneously, even when I pop in during my odd super-late hours. While I saw some life over the rest of the weekend, overall numbers stayed pretty low, even during the hours of the new arena instances. To what do I attribute this? In some cases it was the usual attack of the Real Life (tm) that got ahold of people, but two extra factors contributed to the population insta-decline: the release of Skyrim and more weekend beta invites from Star Wars: The Old Republic. Now in the case of Skyrim, it can't be helped (but maybe we can have a little spacing between the release of so many games?!). We know that once the game is played through, people will wander back to their MMOs. TOR, however, is another matter: Besides the shininess of of a new game and the fact that it is both Star Wars-based and made by BioWare, does Aion have a future of vast, empty lands to look forward to at the release of the latest OMG-it's-the-second-coming-of-games title? Some are certainly screaming doom-and-gloom, but we hear that from dissenters about nearly every little thing. Is it possible that there is room enough for both games to survive after the initial hype has passed? *checks and readjusts all gear again* Come on and join me past the cut for some thoughts on the matter.
Agent progression revealed for Star Wars: The Old Republic
It's been a day for news about Star Wars: The Old Republic as we move still closer to release. The latest character progression video has been unveiled for the Agent, showing both the differences in equipment and abilities players can expect as they level up as one of the subtle hands of the Sith Empire's will. As players grow in power, they can either take the route of the stealthy and aggressive Operative or the resourceful ranged Sniper. On the Operative route, armors tend toward hooded attire as the character employs a variety of blades, bombs, and short-range blaster attacks to keep enemies pinned. Snipers, meanwhile, are sleekly armored ranged dispensers of death, with their abilities culminating in a large-scale orbital strike to take out inconvenient enemies. If you're itching to play an Agent, you'd be well-served to take a look at the full trailer to see all that the class is capable of doing in the name of the Empire.
Star Wars: The Old Republic talks instanced regions and hubs at NYCC
Last weekend's big convention, New York Comic Con, hosted another panel on Star Wars: The Old Republic. And perhaps to the surprise of the fans, this panel was all about numbers. Specifically, it was all about the numbers for upcoming content in the game, such as Flashpoints, Operations, and Warzones. Stephen Reid took his time to lay out what players can expect from this content and how many different areas players can expect, starting with 15 different Flashpoints at launch. The Flashpoints will not all be story-focused, according to Reid, with some focused more heavily on the puzzle or gameplay aspects. All of them, however, can be replayed at higher difficulties in the endgame. In addition, Reid showed off the upcoming fleet hubs for the game, the central gathering areas for players that feature vendors, auction systems, and a special "VIP Lounge" for people who purchased the Collector's Edition. With only a little over two months remaining until the game's launch, there's not much more time before these promised features become a reality.
MMO impressions from Eurogamer Expo 2011
Some of the industry's biggest names were at Eurogamer Expo last week, including BioWare, NCsoft and Trion Worlds. I was on the floor at the expo to get some hands-on experience with several upcoming MMOs and countless singleplayer games. Guild Wars 2 and Star Wars: The Old Republic stole the show, with hands-on gameplay sessions and in-depth developer talks. BioWare also made the bold move of announcing SWTOR's official release date during its talk at the convention. In addition to promoting the heck out of RIFT, Trion showed off upcoming MMORTS End of Nations with a hands-on demo and encouraged attendees to sign up to the End of Nations newsletter. RIFT and World of Tanks were both playable on the show floor for the entire weekend, but nothing new was being shown. Hack-and-slash adventure RPG Dark Souls and the beautifully zen Journey both demonstrated incredibly innovative multiplayer aspects that I'll likely cover in my weekly Not So Massively column, but neither falls neatly into the MMO box. OnLive had a spectacular showing at the expo, giving away free home consoles to every attendee and demonstrating the system's surprisingly lag-free gameplay on the floor. We discovered that although there are no MMOs in OnLive's current lineup, this isn't due to technical infeasibility, so we may yet see MMOs launched on the service. Skip past the cut for my in-depth hands-on impressions of Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic and End of Nations from Eurogamer Expo 2011.
Ask Massively: Early access pre-order hooray edition
We could pretend that the important story of last week was something other than the launch of pre-orders for Star Wars: The Old Republic, but that would be a lie. I know I went straight down to pre-order my copy as soon as I was done with some work in the morning. As usual, it wasn't without controversy -- issues over staggered pre-order releases, limited quantities, and my personal favorite, the fear that it might include some sort of microtransactions in its business model. You know, like every other major subscription game on the market. Before you ask, I got the regular edition. I'm not paying three times the price for a statue. Anyway, this week's Ask Massively is pretty heavily tied into the pre-order talk, what with questions about release dates and the state of no-trial launches. As always, you can feel free to ask a question for a future installment of the column via mail to ask@massively.com, or you can just toss your question in the happy comment field below.
The MMO Report: Lineage shutdown, Lion's Arch, and Sith Inquisitor trailer
Today's MMO Report, sadly, suffers from a distinct lack of Casey Schreiner. But all is well, as G4's Morgan Webb has stepped up to the plate to cover for Casey as he celebrates his 30th birthday. The first order of business is the announcement that NCSoft will be shutting down the North American Lineage servers on June 29th. All inactive accounts for the 13-year-old game have been reactivated, and the game will be free-to-play until the servers go dark. Secondly, we move on to the much-anticipated Guild Wars 2 and the confirmation that Lion's Arch, a social hub featured in the first game, would be making its return in Guild Wars 2. Be sure to check out our coverage of the unveiling of the fly-through video and some analytical commentary from our own Rubi Bayer. Next up is some screen-time for Minecraft. While the game is not strictly an MMO, there's no doubt that the indie title has gained immense popularity in the gaming community. Morgan reports that Minecraft creator Notch is contemplating holding a Las Vegas launch party... err, convention tentatively dated for November 11th. Star Wars: The Old Republic's Sith Inquisitor made its trailer debut earlier this week. Being described by Morgan as "the one player character you really don't want to meet in a dark alley," the class incorporates elements of both spellcasters and stealth classes into one mean, Force-fueled combination. Lastly, we have a fly-through video of the starting zones of Perfect World Entertainment's Ether Saga Odyssey. The free-to-play MMO launched late last month. For the full Casey-and-mailbag-deprived video, scuttle on past the cut.
Interview with BioWare's Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk details studio philosophy and more
BioWare holds a reputation in the gaming community for consistently releasing polished, high-quality games, especially when it comes to in-depth narratives. Have you ever wondered about the studio's philosophy in regard to game creation? Ever wondered what it is that drives BioWare, and moreover -- since this is Massively, after all -- how it influences the ongoing development of Star Wars: The Old Republic? In a rather lengthy interview with Gamasutra, BioWare's Ray Muzyka and Greg Zeschuk give gamers a peek behind the curtain at what really makes BioWare tick. There's a plethora of interesting information in the interview, ranging from the company's philosophy of imbuing each game with emotion -- leading to the strong narratives for which BioWare is so renowned -- to the qualities Ray and Greg think will separate The Old Republic from the elephant in the room that is World of Warcraft. The interview itself is far too lengthy to adequately summarize in the length of a news post, but one point that stands out is that, despite being an absolute powerhouse in the gaming industry, BioWare still focuses heavily on humility. Being able to admit when mistakes have been made and learning from the experience is something that many studios could certainly learn from. For the full, information-packed interview, head on over to Gamasutra.
The Old Republic expected launch window confirmed
EA's financial results report was released to the public today, and alongside the various bits of fiscal information is one important tidbit for fans of Star Wars: The Old Republic. On page 17 of the document, we find "The Packaged Goods title release schedule excludes Star Wars: The Old Republic, which is expected to launch in either Q2 FY12 or Q3 FY12," where Q2 FY12 and Q3 FY12 correspond to July through September and October through December, respectively, of this year. This is obviously excellent news for those who are anticipating The Old Republic's release, and it's aptly timed to boot, coming to light on Intergalactic Star Wars Day. Given that the last piece of information we heard regarding The Old Republic's launch was back in March, we're heartened to see that EA is still holding strong for a 2011 release. If you're the sort of person who likes numbers and financial information for some unholy reason, the document in its entirety is available for your perusal. Fan site Darth Hater has parsed the earnings call itself, noting that EA has also confirmed that SWTOR will be launched as a "Digital Service" under a subscription model.
